


A Sprawling Panorama

by Cumberbatch Critter (ivelostmyspectacles)



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Established Relationship, M/M, Post-Game(s), Tooth-Rotting Fluff, just a lot of fluff okay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-01
Updated: 2017-06-01
Packaged: 2018-11-07 17:11:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11063460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ivelostmyspectacles/pseuds/Cumberbatch%20Critter
Summary: Akira returns to Tokyo to spend Christmas with Yusuke.





	A Sprawling Panorama

**Author's Note:**

> My part of a trade with @kurapixel/badlydrawnshukita over on Tumblr! ofc as soon as we get 80 degree days here, I have to write about Christmas **I hate cold weather
> 
> Thank you again for the trade <3
> 
> I don't own p5, and thanks for reading, all~

They didn’t have snow, but the glimmering of the twinkle lights might have been just enough to make up for it. Akira had experienced snow before, of course, but the ‘white Christmases’ he’d heard of were still unknown. One day, they would have to take a trip to snow country. Today wasn’t that day, though, and still he didn’t mind.

“G-Glühwein?” Yusuke murmured, looking up at one of the signs in the market stall. “I’m afraid I’m not familiar– oh! It’s mulled wine. How disappointing.”

“We have a non-alcoholic version,” the attendant said brightly. “You two look like you’re still in high school, am I right?”

“We’re third years,” Yusuke said, “yes.”

“Would you like to try it?”

“Hmm.” Yusuke’s eyes flicked back to the signboard. “If it’s that much, I’ll have…”

“Yes,” Akira interrupted. “For both of us. I’ve got it,” he said, reaching for his own money.

Yusuke glanced down at him. “No, Akira, I insist–”

“It’s Christmas.” Akira shrugged and accepted the mug from the attendant. “Look, it comes in a mug shaped like a boot.” He held it out to Yusuke.

Yusuke hesitated a moment. Then he was smiling as he took the mug from Akira, gloved fingers brushing his and Akira’s breath still managed to hitch before he turned to accept his own drink.

“I don’t want you to spend all of your money on me.”

He shrugged. “I saved my money to come here for Christmas, I want to be able to spend it.”

“But on yourself–”

“I’d really rather buy stuff for you,” Akira said, and held his mug up for the toast.

It was true that he had been working a regular job back at home, that he had been saving up money for travel and miscellaneous purchases. But he had been doing that solely for the purpose of being able to visit Tokyo on winter break, and the Christmas market was going to be the main place that he sank most of his savings. He really didn’t mind. He _liked_ buying Yusuke stuff, anyway. The man seemed incapable of believing that, even after almost two years.

The glühwein was hot, and it felt good to chase away the cold. It was also immensely sweet, and spicy, and Akira found himself looking to Yusuke for his response.

“It’s… interesting,” Yusuke said.

“Yeah.”

“Perhaps it’s meant to be only be made with actual wine.” Yusuke took another drink, and his breath turned to mist in the air. “It’s not actually bad, though, don’t misunderstand me.”

“No,” Akira agreed. “Just… sweet.”

“It’s not your coffee,” Yusuke commented – was that playfully, even – and Akira almost snorted into his mug. It was definitely not his coffee. “It is a fascinating tradition, though. I’m glad we tried it.”

Akira was glad that he got to experience _this_ , everything, all of the market, and Yusuke, and _Christmas_ in Tokyo that didn’t have the threat of arrest looming over it. He hadn’t _experienced_ Christmas at all, last year, really. Sae had given him the night to himself, and he had spent it alone. He hadn’t trusted himself to meet up with Yusuke. Not if it was going to be a last time.

But not this year. He had this year, and the next year, and however many more were to come. This was not the last time. This was only the first.

That was really sappy, but so was going around looking at twinkle lights and having warm drinks and trying not to lean into Yusuke’s warmth the longer they walked and failing. It wasn’t his fault. Yusuke was endlessly cheerful, almost as bright as the illuminations going on around them, and Akira found himself watching Yusuke animatedly talk about various things almost as much as he was watching the lights.

He didn’t want to go back home. _This_ was his home.

“Akira?”

Akira blinked back to reality. “Sorry. What?”

Yusuke frowned. Just slightly, and the look was out of place on his face with the way that the twinkling continued merrily on in the displays behind them. “Are you alright?”

He had to unstick his tongue from the roof of his mouth. “Yeah,” he said shortly. “I’m great.”

Yusuke seemed to inspect him for a moment longer before smiling again. “Alright. I thought we might take a closer look at the tree–”

Akira was seized with the urge to be close, and closer, and to ignore that he would have to leave in a week’s time, and he had lurched forward to take Yusuke’s hand before he was even consciously aware of it.

“Oh.” Yusuke looked surprised for a moment, then twisted his hand around to be able to properly tangle their fingers. Then he looked away, eyes drawn back to the tree looming in the near distance.  Surprised, but unconcerned. “ _Oh!_ Look at those lights! They’re synchronized, aren’t they? Akira, we must go see them. Please?”

He was so good at distracting him. Akira huffed a laugh, and squeezed Yusuke’s fingers briefly. “Yeah, sure.”

Yusuke’s enthusiasm was almost infectious. He practically pulled Akira across the plaza. Akira had _missed_ him. And he _would_ miss him, when he went back home. But he had missed him when he had left earlier in the year, and here it was, Christmas already and Akira nearly smashed into the back of the artist as he came to a stop to gawk up at the lights on the large tree. They were here. They were _together_. _Now_ mattered. And he couldn’t _not_ enjoy it, when the rapt attention on Yusuke’s face had turned to pure joy.

Besides, they had spoken over the phone and online while they’d been apart. Akira and all of his friends had. They were still there. After all of this time, they weren’t going anywhere. And especially not Yusuke, who was absentmindedly passing his thumb back and forth over the back of Akira’s hand. Their gloves prevented the feel of bare skin, but just then, Akira didn’t need it. This was enough. This was–

“Beautiful,” Yusuke said, and he was talking about the lights, and Akira agreed for a different reason.

“Yeah.” Then he nudged him. “Get a picture?”

“Right. You’ll need to be in frame.”

“What? Why me? The tree’s nice enough without–”

“Because then two beautiful things will be in the photo,” Yusuke said, and he didn’t look up as he struggled with the camera on his phone.

He loved him. He loved him. Their situations might take them apart but Akira knew, _knew_ , without a doubt, that Yusuke would be waiting on him here even so. His whole life here would be. Some things were too precious to let _distance_ ruin. Like Yusuke’s beauty, and his warm little chuckle when Akira said, seriously, “You get in the photo, and then there’ll be three”.

Noses red from the cold, coats and scarves and hats, the twinkling of Christmas lights and chatter around, and it _was_ a great photo. He’d have Yusuke send it to him so he could have it to look at at home. And the rest of the photos they took in front of the tree, each pose more ludicrous than the last. When Yusuke struck up the same pose from the church in Kanda, what felt like ages ago but how could he forget it, Akira had laughed so hard he hadn’t been able to take the picture properly.

He was still a little breathless, and starting to shiver from the cold, when Yusuke pulled him over to the dwindling line for the ferris wheel.

“Can we?” he asked.

Akira couldn’t deny him anything. Akira didn’t _want_ to deny him anything.

It was still cold in the gondola, but it was only him and Yusuke, and they could press into each other without worrying about getting a disapproving look in return. Which reminded him.

Yusuke was still nonstop talking, and Akira didn’t really know where he found the breath. Everything from the lights to the stars starting to shine in the sky to the music to the gondola itself, and then painting and art supplies and how the weather must be getting colder because his breath was fogging up the glass.

Akira reached over and took his face in his hands to kiss him.

Yusuke made a soft noise, and kissed him back, and his hand fell down to grip at Akira’s knee, and the cold and the lights and the view all ceased to exist.

He was going to miss this. He was. But he could come back and do it again, and again, be it Christmas-time or kissing at the top of the ferris wheel. A first. This was a first. They had _so_ many more things to experience together.

What a good thought. What a giddy thought. Akira was giggling as he leaned forward to press his forehead against Yusuke’s and leave it there.

“Is something funny?”

“No. I’m just happy.”

“Well, that’s good.”

A pause, relishing in the feel of Yusuke’s warmth and his breath warm on his face, on clasping a hand over Yusuke’s and wanting to bury himself in the smell of his skin and the sound of his voice–

“Akira?”

Akira opened his eyes. “Yeah?”

“We’re missing the view.”

Akira’s laughter might have been disbelieving if he hadn’t known Yusuke for two years. As it was, he had, and he still felt content even as he pulled away to let Yusuke go back to watching his view.

They held hands the rest of the ride.

Akira still thought he had the best view of all.


End file.
